As we draw ever closer to Christmas and I prepare for a Youth Christmas message, and a Christmas Day sermon I am drawn to Luke’s Gospel. This morning as I was doing my morning devotion I was reading in Luke I discovered a verse that I have overlooked so many times before. But before I get into that let me tell you where they Skywalker reference came from. I did a search for a painting of Luke that I saw a few years ago by Frans Hals. Not thinking I simply typed “Luke” into the google image search and what to my wondering eyes should appear but a page full of Skywalker with nothing to fear. (Sorry it’s getting close to Christmas) In my randomness I got thinking Luke Skywalker and the great differences between him and St. Luke. While I could blog about the differences for the next 10 years I want to focus on only one difference.
Luke Skywalker was an impetuous fellow who wanted to act NOW. Yea, yea a little training was a good idea, but he was not so convinced that it deserved much of his time. Once he figured out the basics, he was good to go, or so he thought. In this way I must admin there is a little Skywalker in me as well. I often figure out just enough to get started with some new skill or device, ad figure I am smart enough to figure the rest out as we go. I wont tell you how long it took for me to figure out the apostrophe on the ipad. ‘nuf said!
St. Luke however operates much differently from the good Jedi Luke. In the opening verses of Luke’s Gospel we find a little more about the good Doctor Luke.
1 Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. 3 Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. (Luke 1:1-4)
Did you notice verse 3? “I myself have carefully investigated everything” luke writes as he begins this account written to the “most excellent Theophilus”. Luke Skywalker and so many others of us just jump in, often without doing our homework. How about matters of faith do you simple take whatever is taught you as “Gospel” or do you investigate it? Do you take time to dig into the Word of God and from that digging gain a perspective and understanding about your faith that can not come any other way.
What if we commit to be more investigative about matters of faith, lets not just use those smart phones to search for the best price on the latest gadget, lets use the search function of those mini computers we carry with us to dig into the Bible. Lets follow Luke’s example and investigate through personal interview and time in the Word what we hold to be true from God.